Opinion pieces, speeches & transcripts

Address to the Chifley Research Centre Forum on Loneliness and Public Policy Responses

October 11, 2018

A couple of years ago the British commentator Will Hutton wrote a book entitled How good we can be. He called for a better politics, and better policy, focused on what these should lead to: a good society.

We have to change how we do politics. It's about more than looking busy.

September 27, 2018

Shortly after his retirement in 2010, former Labor minister Lindsay Tanner set out a powerful critique of the world he’d devoted his life to. In his book Sideshow, he wrote that two rules directed Australian politics: “(1) look like you’re doing something; and (2) don’t offend anyone who matters”.

Note to the New Education Minister: You Need to Try Harder

September 24, 2018

The fundamental flaw in the Morrison government's school funding announcement is its purpose. It is designed to solve a political problem of the Liberals' own making, not to address the policy challenges of our education system, and what this means for Australia.

Young voters

September 05, 2018

The question of whether 16 and 17 years olds should be able to vote in Australian elections is a vital one, but it can't distract from, or substitute for, a wider look at how our democracy is meeting the needs of young Australians.